Seam ironing mechanism



V. .LSIGODA SEAM IRONING MECHANISM March v12, ,196s

Filed Aug. 23, 1965 9 Sheets--Sheel l dOmw.

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Filed Aug. 25, 1965 INVENTOR.

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SEAMIRONING MECHANISM Filed Aug. 25, 1965 9 sheets-'sneu s y wed 7 l j |45 INVENTOR.

Mero@ 516004 United States Patent 3,372,497 STAM IRONBNG MECHANISM Victor J. Sigoda, Great Neck, NX., assignor to Mau-Sew Corporation, New York, NX., a corporation of New York Filed Aug. 23, 1965, Ser. No. 481,522 2.3 Claims. (Cl. 38-2) ABSTRACT F THE DHSCLSURE Ironing mechanism has drive arrangement with variable speed transmission for conveying garment section through ironing elements; transmission may be driven from sewing machine to actuate conveying members only during sewing; ironing members consist of floating buck, thin heat transfer belt, and transversely retractable heat pod(s) to apply heat to belt.

Buck is neither retained at front or rear but restrained from moving longitudinally with work by cooperating blocking roller members in buck and mechanism; buck is capable of limited movement in three dimensions to compensate for differences in bulk of garment section, and h-as transversely movable sections or inserts and longitudinally movable internal belt in contact with inserts.

Heat transfer belt is positively driven and moves with and assists in transporting fabric; heat is transferred through belt from heat pod(s) which are brought into en gagement with belt only when speed of fabric conveying members exceeds one or more predetermined velocities.

Pressure is applied during ironing by driven rollers which apply yieldable pressure to urge buck toward heat source exteriorly of fabric wrapped around and enclosing buck so that garment section can pass onto buck front and be removed from buck rear after ironing continuously, without disengaging buck from heat source after ironing each garment section; each roller separately applies individually yieldable pressure to one buck insert to press it against movable lbuck belt which contacts face of fabric and is drawn along with fabric to reduce friction shine.

Pressure rollers also assist in ltransport of work and can be angularly positioned to provide transverse stretch- -ing component during ironing to transported fabric.

This invention relates to improvements in ironing or press-ing mechanisms for use either independently of, or preferably, in conjunction with, sewing machines, to open up and press open longitudinal seams such as those on trousers legs or garment sleeves. When used with a suitable sewing machine such as disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 3,246,620 which is capable of simultaneously sewing a joining .seam for the fabric plies and separately overcasting each of the free edges of the plies, such seams may be both sewn and pressed open in one continuous operation.

The general combination of a sewing machine together with mechanisms which presses out the sewn seam as formed, is disclosed in U.S. Patents Nos. 1,683,412 and 1,702,271. The present invention has as its main purpose provision of significant improvements in such pressing mechanisms which will make such combinations commercially practicable.

One of the problems previously encountered is that heat, (or steam, or both) used for ironing the seam is applied continuously to the fabric even when the sewing operation is temporarily suspended. Consequently, during such suspensions, too much heat (or steam) could be applied to the fabric resulting in scorch, burn, or other damage. One feature of the improved mechanism is an arrangement in which heat (or steam, or both) is applied to the fabric only when the garment section is in motion through the ironing mechanism. When the garment section is at rest, the source of heat is completely withdrawn from the fabric.

The amount of heat which must be applied to any area of the fabric to produce the proper ironing effect depends upon the length of time the heat is applied. Since the amount of time in which a given heat can be applied to .any one area depends upon the velocity of the garment section as it passes the place of application of the heat, more heat must Ibe applied when the velocity is greater to achieve the proper aggregate of heat. Another feature of the improved mechanism is provision for application of heat by a series of movable heat (and/or steam) sources, called heat pods, which are progressively brought into engagement with the fabric to apply more heat when the velocity of the work exceeds one or more critical speeds. Conversely, as the velocity decreases below the critical speed or speeds, the pods are disengaged, so that at zero velocity, that is, when the garment section is at rest, all of the heat pods are completely disengaged from the work. lf the ironing mechanism has been coupled to a sewing machine, the aggregate heat can therefore be made proportional to the speed of operation of the sewing machine.

Another feature is the use of an endless heat transfer belt interposed between the heat pod and the fabric of the garment secti-on to assist in conveying the garment section .through the ironing members. This belt may be perforated to permit passage of steam therethrough forapplicatio-n to the fabric.

Another problem encountered with previous ironing mechanisms has ybeen the formation of objectionable press or friction shine on the outer or normally viewed surface of the garment where ironed. This may be caused by direct application of heat and pressure to the outer surface of the fabric while there is relative movement between the fabric and the 'source of su-ch heat and pressure. This has been minimized in the mechanism disclosed herein by interposition of a movable belt between the fabric face and lthe buck against which the face is pressed during ironing. The belt moves at the same velocity as the garment section because the belt is driven through conta-ct with the fabric as the garment section is transported through the ironing mechanism by drive or feed belts.

Another problem encountered in pressing a seam open or fiat, that is, with fthe opposed free margins disposed at degrees, is the form-ation at the seam junction of an objectionable ridge or overlap after ironing. By provision of opposed pressure rollers which continually stretch each 4of the joined plies away from the seam junction as the margins are progressively ironed, this too has been eliminated.

The opposed rollers are not only used to stretch the joined plies around the buck, but also to apply yieldable pressure to urge the buck bodily against the heat source. Because with this arrangement, such pressure is applied externally of the buck, through the fabric of the garment section wrapped around the buck, it is possible to iron tubular garment structures such as the legs of trousers, with pressure applied to the buck rather than to the heat source. Furthermore, since each roller individually applies yielda-ble pressure to a different portion of thebuck, the buck can shift under such individual pressures to accommodate unusually thick portions of the seam such as occur where pockets are inserted to avoid choking of the ironing members due to such bulkiness. Because the extra bulkiness causes compression of the springs which apply pressure to the rollers, additional pressure is thereby produced which is exerted only on those seam areas which require more pressure for effective ironing.

, A practical machine must be capable of handling all kinds of seam structures while maintaining the necessary ironing pressure uniformly regardless of the bulk of any portion of the seam. In previous constructions, the buck, the member which cooperates with the heat source by holding the fabric as the heat and pressure are applied, has been of a stationary or fixed type, such as those shown for example in U.S. Patents Nos. 1,683,412 and 1,702,271, which are firmly held at the rear. In other arrangements, particularly those which are used for ironing long lengths of continuous tubing sewn together on the bias and in which the increased bulk at seam crossings is negligible, the buck has been held at the front.

Stationary arrangements of the buck, however, are not suitable for pressing open intricate seam constructions such as those in trousers legs in which pockets are inserted in the seam. In the present disclosure, the buck floats, that is, the arrangement is such that the buck is neither retained at the rear or at the front, but is capable of a limited amount of restrained longitudinal movement in both directions, and some lateral movement as well. In addition, the buck has inserts which are laterally movable and these provide additional accommodation for thickened seam portions. These new features permit the required ironing pressure to be exerted uniformly throughout the entire seam of the garment section as it passes through the ironing members regardless of the thickness of any particular portion.

Other features of the ironing mechanism will in part be obvious and in part will be pointed out in the following description, taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which:

FIG. l is a side view looking downwardly, of the ironing or pressing mechanism showing its general organization, the conventional cooperating sewing machine not being shown;

FIG. 2 is a view looking downwardly at the front of the device as it would be seen from the operating position of the sewing machine;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation taken on lines 5--5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a detail view in perspective of the buck: as it appears when removed from the device;

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the buck;

FIG. 8 is 4a sectional view of the buck taken on line 8-8 of FIG. 7, the recesses for members 201 and 202 having been omitted for clarity;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of the buck taken on line 9-9 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary view in perspective showing one of the pressing or ironing pods and its operational relationship to the heat transfer belt;

FIG. 11 is -a fragmentary view in perspective showing a portion of the conveyor means for transporting the work through the device, the buck being shown installed in operating position, with a portion of the heat transfer belt and part of its operating mechanism indicated; and also showing the members which are used to separate the fabric plies and the free margins of a stitch-joined garment section just prior to the ironing operation;

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary view in perspective showing a portion of the transporting means acting on the garment section and the fabric plies and free margins of the garment section as they are separated and guided by the separating members;

FIG. 13 is a view of a portion of a garment section as it leaves the sewing machine, with the plies joined together by stitching, and with the edge of the free margin of each ply either overcast or pinked; the garment section being typical of the type of work which is transported through the mechanism for ironing open of the seam to be pressed fiat as shown in FIG.

FIG. 14 is a sectional view taken on line 14-14 of FIG. 13;

FIGS. 15 and 16 are sectional views of the garment section taken respectively on lines 15-15 and 16-16 of FIG. 12, showing different stages in the progressive separation of the garment plies and of the free margins aS the garment section is being transported to the ironing members;

FIG. 17 is a sectional view through the buck and the garment section wrapped around it, showing the relationship of the heat transfer belt, the fabric, and the disengaged heat pod when the garment section is not in motion;

FIG. 18 is an enlarged view similar to FIG. 17, but showing the relationship of the heat transfer belt and heat pod when a pod is engaged during those periods in which the garment section is in motion; and also showing the shifting of one of the movable inserts of the buck to accommodate increased bulk of that portion of the seam at which a pocket is inserted.

FIG. 19 is'a perspective view of a fragment of the garment section showing the ironed seam resulting from passage through the ironing members;

FIG. 20 is a sectional view taken on line 20-20 of FIG. 19 through the ironed seam; and

FIG. 21 is a schematic representation of the arrangement used to engage one or more heat pods in proportion to the velocity of the garment section through the mechanism.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, it can be seen that the conveying and ironing mechanisms are supported between two main plates 1t) and 11 which are maintained in rigid, spaced relationship by tie-plates such as 12 (visible in FIG. 2), 14, 15 and 16 (visible in FIG. l). Pedestal members (not shown) are provided to support the device at a suitable height above the floor for convenient coaction with the cooperating sewing machine mounted in its conventional stand .(not shown).

Shaft 20 is iixedly supported between the forward portions of plates 10 and 11 and shaft 21 is rotatably supported in journals provided at the rear portions of plates 10 and 11. Front idler pulley 22 is provided with bearings in its central bore so that it may be rotatably supported on shaft 20, and rear drive pulley 23 is fixed on rotatable shaft 21. Pulleys 22 and 23 are provided with spaced, peripheral V-grooves in which V-belts 24, 25 and 26 (visible in FIG. l) are engaged. Tieplate 27 which is supported by bracket 28 on shaft 29, maintains alignment between the Outrigger ends of shafts 20 and 21. Plate 27 also holds support brackets 30a and 30b on which flat table member 31 may be laid for supporting garment sections as they are transported. Sprocket 35 fixed on the free end of shaft 21 (FIG. 3), rotates pulley 23 and belts 24, 25, and 26 which participate in conveying garment sections through the ironing members.

Referring now to FIG. 1, journalled support 40 is provided at the upper left portion of plate 10 for shaft 41 which Icarries V-belt pulley 42, and similarly, journalled support 43 at the upper right portion of plate 10 is provided for shaft 44. Arm 45 xed on shaft 44, carries stud shaft 46 on which rocker arm 47 is rotatably supported. Stud shafts 48 and 49 on rocker arm 47 support bushed V-belt pulleys 50 and 51. V-belt 52 is engaged in the grooves of pulleys 42, 50 and 51. Sprocket 53 fixed to the free end of shaft 41 (see FIG. 3), rotates pulley 42 and V-belt 52 which engages the upper ply of the garment section wrapped around the lbuck as V-belt 26 engages the bottom ply thereof.

Four support members 70, 71, 72 and 73 are attached to the upper portion of plate 10 (see FIGS. 1 and 5), and bar 75 is supported across the top of these members. Bar 75 has a depending arm 76 which carries horizontal support 77 (see FIG. 3), for a pair of concentric shafts 78 and 79. Arm 80 is fastened at the front (as viewed in FIG. 5), and arm 81 is fastened at the rear of inner shaft 78. Arm 80 carries support stud shaft 82 for pulley 83 and arm 81 Icarries spring anchoring pin 84. Outer shaft 79 carries arm at the front and arm 91 at the rear. Stud shaft 92 on arm 90 supports pulley 93 and arm 91 carries spring anchoring pin 94.

Bar 75 has two depending bushings, 85 and 95, through which pass respectively, threaded eye-bolts 86 and 96. Spring 87 attaches to the eye of bolt 86 and spring 97 attaches to the eye of bolt 96. The other ends of these springs are hooked to pins 94 and 84. Thumbnuts 88 and 98 which are manipulatable on the threaded shafts of their respective eye-bolts, can be turned to vary the tension applied by pulleys 83 and 93 to the lower and upper runs respectively, of V-belt 52.

Pulleys 99 and 100 furnish intermediate support for belt 26 to resist downward pressure applied to the buck by pressure roller assemblies which will now be described.

Members 70, 71, 72 and 73, and their opposing counterparts 178, 171, 172 and 173 which are fastened to the lower portion of plate (see FIG. 5), support movable pressure roller assemblies which apply opposing angular pressure to the upper and lower fabric plies wrapped around the buck. Since the construction of each support member and of each of the pressure roller assemblies supported thereby is the same, the following description of the structure of one support and its associated pressure roller assembly illustrates that of all.

Referring to FIG. 4 which shows support member 70 and its lower counterpart 170, and their respective pressure roller assemblies, it can be seen that member 711 has a hubbed portion 116 which mounts in bore 111 in plate 10, being secured thereto by screws 113. Member 71B projects horizontally away from plate 10 with hubbed portion 110 and another portion 112 longitudinally spaced therefrom, provided with in-line, linear bearings in which tubular shaft support 114 is supported. This type of bearing permits both longitudinal and rotary movement of support 114. Support 114 is provided with low friction journals which permit free rotation of shaft 115 supported therein. Sprocket 116 is xed to one end of shaft 115 and bevel gear 117 to the other.

The upper portion of member 70 is pierced to provide a longitudinally extending slot 118 (visible in FIGS. 1 and 3), and a short, notched guide plate 119 is mounted on top of hubbed portion 110, with the notch of plate 119 in line with slot 118. Tube holder 120 has a lower clamp portion 121 which fits around tube 114 land has a stud shaft 122 fixed to its top surface on which roller 123 is rotatably mounted. Roller 123 fits snugly, but slidably, within the walls of notch 124 of plate 119 (see FIG. 2). When clamp portion 121 is closed about tube 114 (by tightening screw 121a), since this arrangement prevents angular rotation of member 120, it likewise prevents angular rotation of tube 114, without however restricting its lateral movement. Such lateral movement is opposed by pressure applied by spring 125 which fits around tube 114 and bears against member 120 and spring pressure adiuster 126.

Spring pressure adjuster 126 has an upper portion 127 shape to t snugly, but slida'bly, within the walls of slot 118 of member 70, and a bottom flange 128 which bears against the underside of those walls. The position of adjuster 126 in slot 118 can be xed, after positioning to provide the -desired spring pressure exerted against shifting of tube 114, by tightening screw 129 which clamps washer 130 against the top surface and flange 128 against the bottom surface of the walls of the slot.

Member 135, held at the outer end of tube 114, supports a pressure applying roller. Portion 136 is a pinchclamp which secures member 135 to tube 114i. Portion 137 is a hollow gear box, and projecting angularly away therefrom, section 138 is bushed to provide rotatable support for shaft 139. Bevel gear 140 fixed to the upper end of shaft 139, meshes with mating gear 117, and thus pressure roller 141, attached to the lower end of shaft 139, rotates when sprocket 116 is driven.

By individually loosening each screw 121a in the clamp portion of the tube holders 120, the angular aspect of each of the tubes 114 can be varied to position their associated pressure rollers to make angular contact with the fabric plies wrapped about the buck, as for example, as indicated in FIG. l. While such angular contact furnishes a major -drive component to the fabric in the same general direction in which the garment section is being conveyed by V-belts 24, 25, 26 and 52, it also applies an angular drive component and transverse stretching to the top and bottom plies. Such stretching of the plies eliminates the possibility of formation of ridging or overlap at the seam junction during the ironing operation.

The corresponding pressure rollers supported by members 71, 72, 73 and 170, 171, 172 and 173, have been respectively designated 142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 147 and 148 (see FIG. l). These pressure rollers are in turn driven by sprockets respectively designated 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, and 156 (see FIG. 5).

These sprockets are driven by an endless chain 157 which also passes about sprockets 158, 159 and 160 in connecting with sprocket 161 which is driven from a power source generally designated herein as 162.

Power source 162 may be an electric motor with a suitable gear reduction unit to provide the proper operating speed for the device. It may likewise be a variable speed transmission such as a Revco Zero-Max of suitable capacity which is coupled to the output of the clutchmotor drive arrangement of the conventional sewing machine stand. The variable speed transmission makes it possible to drive the ironing mechanism at proper speed for synchronism with operation of the sewing machine, and since it will be operated only when the sewing machine is driven from the clutch-motor arrangement, the conveying members of the ironing mechanism will only draw the garment section from the sewing machine during sewing thereof.

Belt (see FIG. 1l) is also driven from power source 162. Belt 175 is wrapped about large drive belt pulley 176 and two smaller idler pulleys 177 and 178. Either of these idler pulleys may be mounted on a support which will provide suitable tensioning for belt 175.

Pulley 176 is attached to vertical shaft 180 (see FIGS. 3 and 5) which is suitably supported in journals for rotation. At its lower end, shaft 180 is provided with bevel gear 181 which is in mesh with mating `bevel gear 182 which is attached to sprocket 183. Sprocket 183 is the same size as, and fastened to and behind sprocket 158, and therefore shaft 180 rotates when chain 157 drives sprocket 158. Sprocket 183 through endless chain 184 drives sprocket 53 which rotates pulley 42 and V-belt 52.

Belt 175 assists transport of the garment section by conveying the opened free margins of the joined fabric plies at the same time as it transfers heat from the pods to the fabric. Because it conveys the fabric, it also travels at the same speed, and thus there is no relative motion between the belt and fabric. This prevents rubbing of the fabric -by the heat pods and therefore eliminates the possibility of marking of the fabric by such frictional contact.

As seen in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8, buck 135 is an elongated, tapered member, having a thin, flexible fabric plies separator 186 retained in, and extending in front of, chiseledged nose section 187. The nose is joined to a more gradual but increasingly tapered, main body section 188. Rollers 189 and 190 are transversely disposed on horizontal stud shafts near the rear of body section 188 for a purpose which will be made clear subsequently. Ramps 191 and 192 project over rollers 189 and 190 respectively, to provide surfaces for passage thereover of the fabric plies as the garment section is transported.

A second pair of rollers 195 and 196, mounted on vertical stud shafts, is positioned so that the outer run 197 of endless belt 198, mounted on the rollers, is maintained in contact with the face of the fabric plies and is caused to move by such contact with the fabric. Since with this arrangement there is no relative movement between the belt and the fabric, there is no rubbing of the face of the fabric as it passes along the buck under the pressure applied by the heat pods on one side and by the pressure rollers on the other. This eliminates the objectionable friction shine usually caused by such rubbing. Sheet metal guard 199 projecting over roller 195 .and belt 198, prevents the passing upper ply from being caught and drawn between the belt and roller.

Although not shown, a similar roller and belt arrangement could be employed both at the top and bottom of the buck to permit no rubbing passage of the fabric over those surfaces as well. In the absence of such arrangements, the top .and bottom surfaces can be covered with material having a low coeicient of friction.

The body of the buck is provided with a series of top and bottom, transversely disposed recesses in which movable inserts, such as typically 201 and 202 (see FIG. 9), are retained for lateral movement. In this particular version, there is a corresponding insert for each pressure roller, but this is ya matter of choice. More inserts may be better suited for certain operating conditions, and less inserts for others. Preferably, the inserts are also made of a material having a low coefficient of friction so that the fabric may pass more easily along the buck. Each insert is separated from all other inserts and is therefore capable of movement laterally independently of every other insert. The limits of such lateral movement are defined in one direction by the dimensioning of the recesses and inserts to provide the clearance between them indicated in FIG. 9, and by pressure applied by the pressure rollers, such as 141 and 145 as shown in FIG. 4, to hold run 197 of belt 198 flush with the vertical face of the buck, in the other direction.

Proper ironing not only requires application of pressure which is exerted by engagement of the heat pods with the buck, opposed by the resilient pressure applied to the buck by springs 125 through the pressure rollers, but also application of heat of a temperature appropriate for the specific type and nature of fabric, for the required length of time. Heat is supplied by at least one heat pod such as 205 shown in end View in FIG. 4, in plan in FIG. 3 and in perspective from the rear in FIG. 10. As seen in FIG. l0, the pod is made up of two metal plates, 206 and 207, having a high heat transmissibility, bolted together when assembled, provided with suitable internal recesses to retain rod shaped, heat cartridges (not shown) of conventional design, of suicient wattage to produce the required heat. A temperature sensor may also be retained within the pod. The sensor may be of the thermistor, thermocouple or bulb type, connected either to .a temperature indicating or controlling instrument for regulating the temperature of the pod. These aspects of the device are of conventional engineering design, and since they do not affect the inventive concept herein, will not be described.

Pod 205 is attached to mounting plate 208, with heat insulator 209 positioned between the pod and mounting plate to minimize heat transfer in the wrong direction. Plate 208 is attached to shaft 210 of thrusting member 211 which is supported by transverse plate 212. Rollers 213 and 214 attached at the bottom of plate 208, roll on plate 212 as the pod is thrust forwardly by member 211 into engagement with the belt 175.

The pod thrusting member indicated herein is of the air driven piston type, the operation of which requires a conventional electrically actuated solenoid valve for supplying air under pressure to the piston from -a source of compressed air. This thr-usting member could also be an electrically operated solenoid, a uid operated piston or .a mechanical equivalent. Suitable operating and control means for such equivalent thrusting members are well known. The 4control means for the thrusting member will be described subsequently.

In ironing certain fabrics, it may be desirable to apply steam as well as heat. The convoluted tubing indicated as 215 at the back of the pod in FIGS. 4 and l0, may

be used for supplying steam to the fabric, from a convenient source of steam, through a solenoid valve actuated when the pod is brought into engagement with the fabric through the heat transfer belt 17S. Small holes 216 in the heat transfer belt (see FIG. 10), permit passage of steam through the metal of the belt at such times. Portable steam sources are readily available at the necessary plumbing and controls therefore are of conventional design.

Although only one heat pod has been described, more heat pods such as 220 in FIG. 3 could also be employed. The choice will depend upon the speed of passage of the garment section through the ironing members. When the mechanism is coupled to a sewing machine, the speed of passage will vary greatly, depending upon the particular sewing conditions with which the operator must cope at any instant. This variation may range from the at rest position to the full operating speed of the sewing machine.

The arrangement about to be described can handle this range without danger of damage to the fabric during periods of arrested movement while still providing the amount of heat required for ironing the garment section during high speed passage through the ironing members. The arrangement is shown schematically in FIG. 21. Member 225 is an assembly consisting of a journalled rotary member coupled to a governor type actuator which operates switches 226 and 227 when the speed of rotation of the member exceeds predetermined critical speeds. The rotary member has a shaft extension which may be mechanically coupled to a rotating part of the ironing mechanism or of the sewing machine. This type of switch mechanism is commercially available at the Synchro- Start Model GS-2C which has two speed sensitive switches. Other models have different numbers of similar switches.

For the purpose of this disclosure, member 225 is coupled to drive source of the ironing mechanism, which when the drive source is operated from a sewing machine clut-ch-motor will operate in synchronism with the operation of the sewing machine.

Until the rotary member reaches the irst critical speed, switches 226 `and 227 remain open. On attaining the first critical speed, switch 226 closes to complete the circuit from a source of electrical energy to solenoid member 230. With an air operated type of thrusting member, 230 is a solenoid valve which admits air under pressure to the cylinder of thrusting member 211 to drive the heat pod into engaged position. Alternately, solenoid 230 could be used to drive the heat pod directly.

As long as the rotational speed of the rotary member remains above the first critical speed, switch 226 remains closed. When the speed falls below, switch 226 opens and pod 205 will be retracted out of engagement. As the speed increases and reaches the second critical speed, switch 227 will be actuated, completing the circuit to solenoid 231 which will cause heat pod 220 to be driven into engaged position. It is apparent that a third switch in another version of the Synchro-Start speed sensitive switch could be actuated above a third critical speed to cause a third heat pod to be driven into engaged position. Whenever the rotational speed of the rotary member falls below the critical speeds, one or more switches will open, progressively causing retraction of the heat pods in order inverse to that of their engagement.

As mentioned, a major problem encountered in ironing garment sections arises from differences in bulk in the seam caused by such insertions as pockets. The manner in which this problem is overcome is depicted in FIG. 18 which shows a heat pod engaged with a garment section having such an insertion wrapped around the buck, and how the top insert 201 can shift to accommodate increased bulk.

Where increased bulk occurs uniformly across the seam because of a cross seam, both insert 201 and insert 202 can shift laterally to accommodate such increased bulk.

9 At crotch seams where such accommodation may not be enough, the entire buck can also shift laterally. Since the pressure exerted through the opposed rollers is applied by each roller independently of any other roller, in making this lateral accommodation, the buck can even pivot about the increased bulk against the yieldable pressure applied by spring 125 in each roller assembly. This arrangement also makes it possible for the buck to rock angularly tothe horizontal plane in which it can shift laterally.

As seen in FIG. 1, the garment section wrapped around the buck is drawn by belts 24, 25, 26, 52, and 175 toward the left, and thus there is a tendency for the buck to travel with the work in the same direction. In prior art constructions, this tendency has been overcome by anchoring the buck against such movement either at the front or rear end. This tendency has been overcome in the present arrangement however without anchoring the buck at either end, by restraining the buck so that it has a limited amount of longitudinal movement. This arrangement has the advantage that it permits a certain amount of longitudinal shifting in addition to the lateral and angular freedom mentioned.

Referring now to FIG. 5, it can be seen that the vertical spacing between offset pulleys 23 and 42 defines an opening or throat from which the garment section wrapped around the buck, emerges after ironing. This opening however is smaller Ythan the dimension vertically across offset rollers 189 and 190 of the buck, and therefore the buck cannot pass through the opening. However, the fabric' ofthe garment section drawn along the buck by the belts can pass through this opening, the top ply passing betweenroller 190 and V-belt 52 wrapped around pulley 42,and the bottom ply passing between roller 139 and Vabelt 26 wrapped around pulley 23.

)if` the buck were anchored so that it could not shift longitudinally against the drag exerted by the garment section wrapped around the buck as the fabric is drawn tothe throat by the action of the'conveying belts, any signicant increase in bulk in the seam would tend to choke the throat. Despite the fact that the fabric is wrapped around the buck tightly due to the roller action and taper of the buck mentioned previously, there is still enough slippage tbetween fabric and buck to permit the latter to shift longitudinallywhenever increased bulk passes between either roller 189 or 190 and its coacting pulley until the bulkiness clears .the throat .which has been expanded by such shifting. After such clearance, the drag of the moving fabric plies returns the buck to its usual position.

Such shifting is possible because the chisel-edged nose 187 of the buclf` can force V-belt 52, and pulleys 50 and 51 about which it is wrapped, upwardly about shaft 44 so that the buck can ride over pulley 22 during the shift.

YLongitudinal shifting of the buck is subjected to two restraints, the dragjproduced by the conveying belts on therabricwrapped around the buck, and the resilient counter-action produced by forcing V-belt 52 and pulleys 50 and 51, upwardly. The V-belt is made of a resilient material,` and the upward flexing produces a counterpressure which also tends to urge the buck back to its usual leftward position. In order to produce the ironed effect of the garment section shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, the free margins of the plies must be separated, opened an'd held in proper position for ironing. This is brought about by separator member-235 shown supported on the ironing mechanism in FlGjllfMember 235 consists of a thin, exible blade 2364 extending forwardly and a tapered seam opening section 237 extending rearwardly.

When the garment section is inserted in the ironing mechanism, the free margins of the seam are iitted around blade 236, with the upper margin on top and the lower margin beneath theblade. The joined plies are fitted over separator blade y186 at thefront of the buck in the same manner, with the seam junction disposed between the two 1@ blades. The top ply of the joined portion will then be under belt 52 and the bottom ply will be on belt 26, with the rest of the garment section resting on belts 24 and 25.

As the belts draw the garment section to the ironing station, the free margins will be separated and opened out as shown in FIGS. 15 and 16 until the progressively bent back margins will be disposed as shown in FIG. 17 between the buck and belt 175. When the heat pod is driven into position as indicated in FIG. 1S, the margins wil be tightly bent back and will be pressed in this position during the ironing.

At the same time, the joined plies will be separated more widely as they pass along separator 186, over nose 187 and around the expanding body section 183 of the buck. Engagement of the pressure rollers with the fabric of the plies at the upper and lower portions of the far side of the buck will cause the seam junction to be pulled apart as the fabric of each ply is progressively tightened and stretched by the action of the angularly disposed rollers of the buck, which prevents formation of ridging or overlap at the seam junction during the ironing operation.

During the ironing, the buck and the individual inserts will shift as necessary to accommodate any bulkiness occurring in the seam.

If the ironing mechanism has been coupled to a sewing machine, appropriate separating and guiding means on the sewing machine communicating with blades 186 and 235 will provide automatic lead-on of the sewn plies of the garment section onto the buck, the enchained threads between sections assisting in drawing the following section for lead-on.

Although not shown, a thread cutter could be installed on the ironing mechanism to separate the umbilical thread chains between garment sections after lead-on so that the sections could travel independently through the ironing station after separation.

Certain fabrics require cooling or chilling after being ironed to set the fabric, as otherwise, if handled or stacked while still warm, the garment section could be distorted. For this purpose, provision can be made for applying a jet or blast of air to the ironed garment section as it emerges from the throat of the mechanism, after which it can safely be conveyed and stacked by other mechamsm.

When used in the claims which follow, the term heated member means structure which is applied either directly or indirectly to the fabric to be ironed or pressed, and which includes or communicates with a source capable Of supplying heat only, steam only, or both heat and steam simultaneously or selectively, and when steam is supplied, either as wet or dry steam; and

The term buck means structure against which the fabric is pressed or ironed and which either resists or applies pressure during application ofA heat (as dened above), by or from the 'heated member during ironing or pressing of the fa'bric.

What is claimed is:

1. Seam ironing mechanism having ironing members comprising a heated member and a buck against which the fabric of garment sections can be ironed by the heated member when the ironing members are engaged; structure for bringing said ironing members into engagement; conveying means for transporting garment sections to, between and beyond the ironing members; and means respons'lve to the velocity of the conveying means for actuating the structure for bringing the ironing members into cngagement only when the velocity of the conveying means reaches a predetermined value.

2. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 1 in which the velocity responsive lmeans includes additional mechanism actuated when the velocity of the conveying members reaches a second predetermined Vahle, for supplying additional heat to the ironing members.

3. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 1 in which there is more than one movable heated member engageable with the buck; separate mechanisms for bringing each of the heated members into engagement with the buck; and in which the velocity responsive means has mechanism arranged to actuate the mechanism for bringing one of the heated members into engagement with the buck when the velocity exceeds one predetermined value, and to actuate mechanism for bringing one or more other heated `members into engagement With the buck when the velocity exceeds one or more other predetermined speeds.

4. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 3 in which the ironing mechanism is associated with and driven from a sewing machine on which garment sections having at least two fabric layers or plies are joined together by stitching with the free margins extending beyond the stitching, in which there are means for progressively separating the free margins and for guiding them into opposed relation; in which the conveying means is driven from the sewing machine and is arranged to draw the sewn garment sections from the sewing machine, through the separati'ng and guiding means, and to, between and beyond the ironing members on the ironing mechanism; and in which there are at least two movable heated members, engageable with the buck; mechanism for individually moving each of said heated lmembers into engagement with the buck; and in which the speed responsive means is responsive to the operating speed of the sewing machine so that when the operating speed exceeds one predetermined value, the mechanism for moving one of the heated members into engagement is actuated, and so that when the operating speed exceeds a second predetermined speed, the mechanism for moving another said heated members into engagement is actuated.

5. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 1 in which the heated member is mounted for movement transversely to the direction of movement of the conveying means, and in which the conveying means includes a driven belt disposed between the movable heated member and the buck through which belt the heat supplied by the heated member is transmitted to the fabric of the work when the heated member is moved to bring the ironing members into engagement.

6. Seam ironing mechanism having ironing members comprising a heated member and a buck against which work can be pressed by the heated member; and conveying members for transporting work between the ironing members, comprising separate driven means having driving contact with the work on the top and bottom surfaces of the buck and on each side of the buck.

7 Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 6 in which the buck has freedom to move longitudinally laterally and angularly within the driven means having contact with the top and bottom surfaces and each side of the buck; and having means cooperating with one portion of the buck for restraining longitudinal movement in one direction, and yieldable means opposing longitudinal movement in the opposite direction; together with yieldable means opposing lateral and angular movement, said freedom of movement permitting the buck to shift in any of the mentioned directions to accommodate bulkiness occurring in the work as it is conveyed between the ironing members.

8. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 7 in which the means opposing lateral and angular shifting ofthe buck coacts with one of the mentioned driven means having driving contact with the work on one of the sides of the buck for restraining longitudinal movement in one mounted members, means for mounting each of said members for independent movement transversely to the length of the buck, individual means for urging each of said members bodily transversely to the length of the buck to apply pressure through said members to different parts of the upper portion of said side of the buck; and a second series of rotatably mounted members, means for mounting each of such members for independent movement transversely to the length of the buck; and individual means for urging each of said members bodily transversely to the length of the buck to apply pressure through said members to different parts of the lower portion of said side of the buck.

9. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 8 in which the buck is provided with recesses transverse to its length, and there are movable inserts retained within said recesses capable of movement transversely to the length of the buck, and in which each one of the mentioned rotatable members is in contact with one of said inserts as well as with one part of the buck to apply pressure to said insert and to said part of the buck to yieldingly oppose transverse movement occasioned by bulkiness occurring in the work.

10. Seam ironing mechanism having ironing members including a heated member and a buck against which the fabric of garment sections can be pressed by the heated member when the ironing members are engaged; means for bringing the ironing members into engagement; conveying means for transporting the work to, between and beyond the ironing members, comprising driven belts including a pair of opposed belts arranged horizontally in spaced vertical relation, with the buck horizontally disposed between the opposed belts and with one of said belts in driving contact with the fabric on the top of the buck and with the other of said belts in driving contact with the fabric on the bottom of the buck; and means operating on the side of the buck opposite that which engages with the heated member, for applying yieldable pressure to the buck to urge the latter toward the heated member.

11. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 10 in which the means for applying yieldable pressure to the buck comprises a series of rollers in contact with the fabric.

12. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 11 in which means are provided for driving the rollers in contact with the fabric on the buck for assisting in drawing the fabric along the buck.

13. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 11 in which the rollers are arranged in two opposed series, each roller being capable of being angularly disposed to the length of the buck to exert a stretching action on the work as it is drawn along the buck.

14. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 13 in which means are provided for driving the angularly disposed rollers.

15. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 10 in which the conveying means also includes a driven belt operating in a plane angularly disposed to that of the opposed belts and which is positioned between the ironing members in contact with the fabric onthe other side of the buck for assisting in drawing the fabric along the buck, and in which the yieldable pressure means urges the buck into engagement with the last named belt.

16. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 15 in which a movable belt is mounted within the buck with one run of said belt in contact with one face of the fabric of the work so that said belt can be driven by such contact as the work is drawn along the buck by the conveying means, and in which the driven belt positioned between the buck and the heated member is in contact with the other face of the fabric, so that there is Ano relative movement between both faces of the fabric and the belts in contact therewith as the work is drawn along the buck.

17. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 10 in which a portion of one of the opposed belts is supported on a mounting which is capable of being displaced to permit longitudinal movement of the buck.

18. Seam ironing mechanism having ironing members including a buck which is free to move longitudinally; conveying means for transporting work through the ironing mem-bers and which exerts drag onV the buck tending to move the buck in the direction of transport; and means lfor restraining longitudinal movement of the buck in the 13 direction of work transport without limiting the freedom of longitudinal movement in the opposite direction, comprising an arrangement of the conveying means in which members are displaced from each other to define an opening, and in which the buck has a structure which has a dimension greater than the defined opening.

19. Seam ironing mechanism according to claim 18 in which the displaced members of the conveying means includes ya lirst driven, horizontally disposed pulley for driving a first horizontal work conveying belt, and a second driven, horizontally disposed pulley for driving an opposed second work conveying belt, said pulleys being mounted in vertical displacement from each other for defining said opening; and in which the structure of the buck includes a pair of rollers mounted for rotation on vertically spaced axes, the distance between such rollers being greater than the largest vertical dimension defined by the opening between the said pulleys.

20. A buck for insertion in seam ironing mechanism having a heated ironing member which presses work against the inserted buck, and means for conveying garment sections between the heated member and around and along the buck; said buck having an elongated structure and having portions which are capable of independent movement transversely to the length of the buck.

21. A buck according to claim 20 having a portion consisting of a thin, flexible projecting member; a sharply tapered portion adjacent the liexible member; and a body portion having a taper gradually increasing in the direction in which garment sections are drawn along the buck by the conveying means.

22. A buck according to claim 21 in Which the portions capable of independent movement transversely comprise recesses within the body portion of the buck with one of more movable inserts retained in said recesses for independent transverse movement.

23. A buck according to claim 21 in which means are provided for producing a relative no movement passage of the fabric of the garment section along one surface of the buck, said means comprising a movable belt mounted in the buck with one run of the belt so disposed with respect to said surface that fabric passing along said surface comes into contact with said belt run to draw the belt with the fabric as the garment section is drawn along the buck.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,533,685 4/1925 Bailer et al. 38-2 1,683,412 9/1928 Rosenbaum et al 38-2 1,702,271 2/1929 Rosenbaum et al. 38-10 3,246,616 4/1966 Korioth 1l2217 X JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner. G. V. LARKIN, Examiner. 

